Iconic gunmaker Colt is on the brink of bankruptcy

[Parker Duofold]

Obviously Colt has huge financial problems.

They are into the Wall Street bankers in a very large way (private equity owners, Sciens Management) and there are also the bondholders who aren't anxious to take a pennies on the dollar settlement.

Reintroducing the iconic "snake guns" isn't going to begin to solve Colt's money woes. They are very labor intensive to manufacture and I'd guess the skilled gunsmiths who made them are long gone.

Colt needs to declare bankruptcy. Their problem isn't necessarily the high cost of union labor or even being in Connecticut -- they just need more business to offset those costs and become profitable. As in most business without the sales you're done.

Handguns to compete directly with Glock, S&W and the like - I don't think so.

 

[wiryone1]

They went the polymer route. Remember the All American 2000? A dismal failure.

Maybe Remmington should buy Colt and bring back the All American 2000. They could market it alongside the R51. They would complement each other well.

 

[VetteGirlMA]

Honestly when I was in the market to buy my first handgun early this year, Colt wasn't even in the running. In fact I don't even know if I actually held a Colt in my hands or if gun shops even had them. They had plenty of Smiths, Glocks, Sigs, and a few others but almost never a Colt. It would be a shame if they went under though.

 

[Dadstoys]

Just poor management.
Setting a company on cruise control and relying on the Govt. contracts to carry them was only going to work as long as the contracts lasted.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

I don't see how they could market a Python for under 3K.

]I wonder if they would get much traction re-introducing the BOA and calling it the Python II. The Boa was a short lived gun that had the look of a Python, but the internal lockwork of the Colt Trooper.

Just poor management.

And union pay scales, work and hiring/firing rules.

The property tax is stupid as well.

It is very smart if you want to collect it. Name any other tax were a municipality has no risk of someone owing taxes not making the proper withholding; reporting their cash income; or leaving the jurisdiction with a tax debt. Property taxes are used because the collateral cannot be moved, nor can it be transferred to another person without satisfaction of the tax debt.

 

[falcon123]

maybe they could apply for a government bailout. The car companies did...lol

 

[CoastieRon]

]I wonder if they would get much traction re-introducing the BOA and calling it the Python II. The Boa was a short lived gun that had the look of a Python, but the internal lockwork of the Colt Trooper.


And union pay scales, work and hiring/firing rules.


It is very smart if you want to collect it. Name any other tax were a municipality has no risk of someone owing taxes not making the proper withholding; reporting their cash income; or leaving the jurisdiction with a tax debt. Property taxes are used because the collateral cannot be moved, nor can it be transferred to another person without satisfaction of the tax debt.

My use of the word "stupid" in the context used should be defined as "ridiculously expensive".....


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[drgrant]

Colts marketing absolutely sucks, too.. they've relied on the name too much... Look at Krapber for contrast, they make a product that probably isn't much better than colts 1911 offerings yet they sell thousands more guns... because every big gun shop carries the full Krapber line.

-Mike

 

[stinger35]

Marketing sucks.
Look at the .380 craze that took off. The mustang has been out forever, but the sig 238 swept the market for awhile...Colt was napping.

 

[boilermaker]

Colt needs to declare bankruptcy and ride out the process. They likely can't invest in new tooling for new product because any cash goes to debt obligations. They can't market because any cash goes to debt obligations. Apparently they don't generate enough cash to fulfill their debt obligation either. Declare bankruptcy, another company purchases the name and makes 1911s and a AR rifle and it is a sub-segment of a larger company.

 

[tk421991]

Colt made its name in two ways - pistols and revolvers. The first revolvers were Colts, the SAA, the 1911, the pocket guns made by John Moses Browning, the Trooper, Anadaconda, Cobra, etc. Colt had already been selling guns to the military for 100 years by the time they bought the AR15.

Bringing back large, big bore revolvers won't plug the financial dyke. It can't, that's not where the gun market is going these days. Hottest items now are carry pistols, ARs and new semi auto rifles like the ARX100, the 'bama AUG and the SCAR. Making an expensive revolver for the niche market of pistol hunters and guys who simply want a big revolver isn't going to solve the problem. They may be able to get away with a Judge/Governor kind of revolver but people already say that S&W ripped off Taurus' idea. I don't know of how Colt could improve on the concept.

When Savage went under, they cut their production back to one gun - the 110. The 110 was and is not expensive, easy to make, and sells. It's been around for longer than the Remington 700. Now Savage is doing quite well and makes some pretty sweet guns.

What is Colt's version of the 110? Probably a pistol that'd sell to the police and consumer market at about $600 or $750 or so. Not too expensive, not cheap. They need a gun that most people would or could buy and which will sell.

 

[Navy Moose]

Not only start a polymer line, bring back the "snake" revolvers - they go for a huge premium used. Bring back the 1903 (didn't I see a limited run will be made later this year?). Update the 1911 with premium versions and try to take back some of the market from STI/SVI/Kimber, etc. How about some decent double-stack semiautos in addition to better pocket pistols?

IOW, start selling guns again that people WANT.

I had a similar discussion with my local gun shop last week about Colt and stuff I'd love to see them make

 

[EJFudd]

Handguns to compete directly with Glock, S&W and the like - I don't think so.

I don't think so either. Cheap plastic cop & carry pistols will not be Colt's salvation. There is already a ton of plastic around and prices continue to drop on every single one of them once the newness effect goes away. Other plastic producers have too much of a lead for the existing Colt company to ever play catch up in that market.

Colt needs to declare bankruptcy and ride out the process. They likely can't invest in new tooling for new product because any cash goes to debt obligations. They can't market because any cash goes to debt obligations. Apparently they don't generate enough cash to fulfill their debt obligation either. Declare bankruptcy, another company purchases the name and makes 1911s and a AR rifle and it is a sub-segment of a larger company.

Exactly.

 

[M60]

Just poor management.
Setting a company on cruise control and relying on the Govt. contracts to carry them was only going to work as long as the contracts lasted.

+1. This exactly. Complacency and cocky attitude. My local shop spoke with Colt reps and a dealer show. They pretty much told him that were so busy with .gov at the time that they didn't need non .gov business. Of course that was before they lost .gov. The idiots in management who made the decision to pretty much put all of the eggs in one basket are to blame for this awful place that Colt is in. Sam Colt is probably rolling over his grave. How many good / great guns has Colt not developed due to managements stupidity! Colt has brought us some pretty spectacular firearms over the years and could do it again, If they could / would put correct management in place. Is there really anyone that wouldn't rather have a Colt AR15 than a PSA or anything for that matter. Well, maybe BCM is a very close second, but you get what I'm saying here. Besides, with all of the 1911's that I have and have had, I'm still looking to get a new series 70 and have it built correctly into a sexy Bar-B-Q gun by one of the greats in the 1911 industry.

 

[Dadstoys]

I still consider my Python one of the crown jewels of my collection.
One seldom handles that kind of craftsmanship.
The single action trigger breaks at about 1 1/2 lbs.
Smooth as a prom queens thighs.

 

[jhblaze1]

I have no interest in anything Colt made after the mid 1980's anyhow.

why? their current 1911s are fantastic

 

[Broc Tuah]

Maybe Remmington should buy Colt and bring back the All American 2000. They could market it alongside the R51. They would complement each other well.

Why buy them when you can take their engineers or design your own gun?

 

[Mr Weebles]

How many NES members considered a Colt for their last few gun purchases. Nothing in their lineup appeals to me at all.

Bankruptcy and reorg, or sell their assets to a competitor. Two choices, really.

 

[wiryone1]

The only thing Colt makes that has interested me at all is the Delta Elite 10mm. Their AR-15s don't do anything for me. BCM has surpassed Colt in my mind. I would also rather buy a Windham or a Rock River.

 

[bigblue]

Colt's problem has to do with their machinery and out dated production facilities. They have not invested capital in years so now they are so far behind the ball it would take a complete overhaul. New lost cost models sound like a great idea but Colt needs to be gutted from the inside out. Completely.

 

[Steve Marshall]

Colt ANYTHING typically was overpriced. All those 1911 Gunsmiths, well, why do you think they were there? The GI .45's worked well but they stopped making those in the 40's. The civilian versions were crap. They had problems feeding ball ammunition. Pythons. Smooth, accurate and wildly expensive not to mention the archaic innards and the propensity of timing issues. SAA revolvers. Remember when Ruger made a modern version and singlehandedly re-established a market? So Colt reintroduces the SAA at what, double the price of the Rugers without improving a thing? Rather than improving their natural market, handguns, they acquire the rights to the M-16. Then they even piss that away.

 

[tk421991]

How many NES members considered a Colt for their last few gun purchases. Nothing in their lineup appeals to me at all.

Bankruptcy and reorg, or sell their assets to a competitor. Two choices, really.

Colt New Agent, but I think they discontinued it recently since it's no longer on their website. I handled one at Shooter's Outpost and at over $1000, it's a steep price for a pocket gun. I asked the salesman how often they sell and he said they had about 5 or 6 and they never sell. This was about a month ago.

 

[mark056]

Colt ANYTHING typically was overpriced. All those 1911 Gunsmiths, well, why do you think they were there? The GI .45's worked well but they stopped making those in the 40's. The civilian versions were crap. They had problems feeding ball ammunition. Pythons. Smooth, accurate and wildly expensive not to mention the archaic innards and the propensity of timing issues. SAA revolvers. Remember when Ruger made a modern version and singlehandedly re-established a market? So Colt reintroduces the SAA at what, double the price of the Rugers without improving a thing? Rather than improving their natural market, handguns, they acquire the rights to the M-16. Then they even piss that away.

Actually they produced a new SA called the Colt Cowboy in the 90's for the SASS Crowd and then discontinued it. I don't know why. Designed to compete with the Ruger Vaquero. They have the reverse Midas touch, everything they touch and every good idea they have turns to shit. Ruger ought to buy them out IMO or maybe as somebody else suggested FN. I'd like to see the name survive and so would a lot of others.

 

[Waher]

Ruger has a company philosophy of not getting into or acquiring debt. They might buy the trademark if it was valuable, but sure as hell won't be buying the company.

 

[bigblue]

Ruger has a company philosophy of not getting into or acquiring debt. They might buy the trademark if it was valuable, but sure as hell won't be buying the company.

IMO this is what Colt needs to survive: Flush out all of the old crap (people, machinery, mgt, etc.) and start anew. FN has no need to buy Colt bc they already have the .mil contracts. Remington maybe, not many other who would be willing to on all that debt.

 

[mark056]

Ruger has a company philosophy of not getting into or acquiring debt. They might buy the trademark if it was valuable, but sure as hell won't be buying the company.

Currently Colt intellectual property is owned by two owners which only complicates things. You raise a good point. I would point out however that since the Ruger family no longer controls the company and has to some extent Ruger has gone in different directions, such an acquisition would not, at least to my way of thinking be out of the question. I know when U.S. Repeating Arms folded back in the mid 2000's Ruger seriously looked at buying their assets including the old Winchester plant in New Haven.